Rayerbazar Remains to Be Identified Through DNA Testing: Home Affairs Adviser
The mass grave of martyrs from the July uprising at Rayerbazar will undergo DNA testing to identify the bodies, announced Lieutenant General (Retd.) Mohammad Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, Adviser to the Ministry of Home Affairs.
The adviser made the announcement during a press briefing on Saturday, August 2, after visiting and offering prayers at the mass grave site in Rayerbazar, Dhaka.
He stated, “Once the bodies are identified through DNA testing, the families of the martyrs will have the option to relocate the remains to their respective village cemeteries, should they wish to do so.”
According to the adviser, the Rayerbazar mass grave contains the remains of 114 individuals who were martyred during the July uprising.
Expressing dissatisfaction over the construction quality of the grave site, he remarked, “Corruption is a major issue in our country. Unless we tackle corruption, nothing will improve.”
He added, “Even here, as you can see, the quality of bricks used in the martyrs' graves is substandard.” During his visit, he directed the executive engineer from the Public Works Department to replace the poor-quality bricks and ensure top-level supervision for maintaining construction standards. In response, the executive engineer assured that the contractor would be changed if necessary and committed to upholding construction quality.
Lieutenant General Chowdhury further noted that the DNA testing process will effectively serve as a postmortem examination. “Since DNA testing will be conducted on the bodies in the mass grave, it will function as a postmortem. This process will be overseen by a committee that will include doctors. The committee members will be able to explain the exact procedures in more detail,” he said.
In response to a journalist’s question regarding delayed investigations due to the absence of autopsies, the adviser acknowledged the concern, stating, “Many people were martyred in the July uprising. Several cases are still pending trial, and some have already entered the judicial process. Work on these cases is progressing, and they will be brought to trial as soon as possible.”
Later in the day, the adviser visited the barracks of Special Security and Protection Battalion (SPBN)-2 in Mohammadpur, as well as the headquarters of Rapid Action Battalion (RAB)-2.
